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News Hans-Joachim Kamp

News Hans-Joachim Kamp Chairman of the supervisory board of gfu Prof. Dr-Ing Rüdiger Kays Communication Technology Institute, TU Dortmund University communication systems triples every 12 months; plus, Internet access is proliferating, the basis for increasing the accessibility and user value of smart systems. High processing power for less money, convenient user interfaces, cheaper cloud storage, and the introduction of smart electricity grids and smart metering will also hasten the adoption of smart technology, Professor Kays believes. "The technology is available and affordable - science has made its contribution, there are no fundamental problems," concluded the Professor. The increased networking of home appliances was reiterated at the media briefing by Volker Klodwig, head of sales, Germany, Bosch Siemens Home Appliances. He predicted that by 2015, there will be more than six billion networked home appliances worldwide. Klodwig described connectivity as the new industry paradigm. Smart technology is fundamental to achieving the energy efficiency that is driving innovation in the household appliance market, according to the BSH sales chief. "The energy consumption “The energy consumption of home appliances accounts for 50 percent of the electricity bill” of home appliances accounts for 50 percent of the electricity bill," said Klodwig, who wants to make household appliances front and centre of an energy revolution by employing efficient products to generate huge energy savings. Replacing obsolete equipment with smart energy saving products will be key to bringing down CO2 emissions globally, he added. Smart and UHD TV Focus The strong focus on Smart and UHD TVs at the July media briefing was part of an industry-wide push to breath new life into the largest CE sector. Though total unit sales of TVs are up, the sector has suffered from declining sales value in the first half of 2013. Despite an expected stronger second half of 2013, the TV sector as a whole will very likely be weaker than 2012, though at very high volume numbers. A unique new joint initiative between TV manufacturers, trade organisations and other partners and industry groups titled "Smarter TV" was launched on 10th July in Berlin, part of a push to increase both TV pixels and profits in Germany. Frank Schipper, board member of the Association of Retail Trade Technology (BAT), and Hans Wienands, chairman of Germany's Consumer Electronics trade association (ZVEI), presented this farsighted initiative aimed at bringing consumers closer to the smart, interactive television experience. To inform and inspire consumers about the 16

News Marcel Gonska Managing Director, WLC GmbH Dr Christian Göke CEO of Messe Berlin benefits of Internetenabled TVs that offer features such as media centers, Facebook, Skype and video-on-demand, the Smarter TV initiative will maintain a focused marketing campaign via retail presentations, consumer mail-outs, and of course IFA. Ultra High Definition TV (UHD), with volume sales in 2013 expected to reach 3.5-4 million units (far higher than earlier estimates), will be another strong avenue for growth in the sector, according to Marcel Gonska of WLC GmbH. UHD will quickly rise above HDTV and 3DTV to become the industry standard in several years, said Gonska. Under the motto "More focus is smart", Gonska asserted that UHD was not simply a video signal with more pixels, but a completely new, synergized TV experience that will be introduced incrementally over the next few years. Presenting a UHD roadmap from now until 2020, Gonska predicted that UHD and the current High Definition TV standard (HDTV) will continue to coexist, and to complement each other in the CE market. UHD will, however, inevitably become the market leader because it offers "hyper clarity" and "more, bigger stories" at the new 4k resolution. Making this happen will require effective standardisation of the technology and greater consumer education, Gonska believes. He added that popular film projects shot on UHD like Paul Jackson's The Hobbit, would further help grow the market. Insights & trends now established on the IFA calendar With more than 400 participants at the media briefing, gfu Insights & Trends is the largest event of its kind in 2013. Meanwhile, 30 leading edge companies presented their innovations and new products at the briefing, a preview before the official launch to trade, media and consumers at IFA in September. "The exceptional response to our two formats illustrates that we are meeting the needs and interests of both the industry and the media," said Dr. Alexander Pett, Managing Director of gfu. "Gfu Insights and Trends and the gfu Media Night 2013 have also far exceeded expectations and set new standards." “UHD will quickly rise above HDTV and 3DTV to become the industry standard in several years, (…)” www.ifa-international.org IFAInternational • Monday 2 nd September 2013 17